Ye Olde Shopping Trippe Trivia Quiz

Answer: Wool

Mr Walker's days are spent walking on woollen material which is sitting in a large trough of liquid, in order to thicken it and remove any impurities. The pressure and movement on the material would 'felt' it, the fibres meshing and creating felt, a thicker, more water-resistant material. The word 'walker' is synonymous with the terms 'fuller' and 'tucker', both of which are surnames today. The job could have been done by hand, with the feet, or by pounding the fabric with mallets.

Murray Walker is a British journalist most famous for his wonderful calls of Formula 1 races. Alice Walker's novel 'The Color Purple' won the Pulitzer Prize, and was made into a movie in 1982. Two presidents of the USA have had Walker as a middle name. George Herbert Walker Bush was president from 1989 to 1993, and his son George Walker Bush was president from 2001 to 2009. The Walker in their name comes from President Bush Senior's grandfather, George Herbert Walker, who was a successful businessman.

Answer: Shears sheep

The name Sherman was used to denote someone who worked with shears. This might have meant a sheep shearer as in this case, or someone who delicately trimmed any excess nap of newly made, expensive fabrics with a set of fine shears.

William Tecumseh Sherman was a US Civil War general most famous for his "scorched earth" policy which left the South in ruins. On the other hand, Bobby Sherman was a singer in the 1960s in the same mould as David Cassidy.

Answer: Mayor

The surname Myers comes to us from the Old English word 'maire' which in turn came from the Latin word 'maior' meaning 'better' or 'superior'. A maire was an official agent in charge of legal matter such as summonses. This occupation evolved into the office of mayor, and the surname of Myers.

There are quite a few famous people with the surname of Myers. Take these four, all Michael Myers. Sir Michael Myers (1873-1950) was the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of New Zealand. Michael Myers (born 1943) was a member of the US House of Representatives until caught taking a bribe. He was booted out of Congress. Then there's Michael Myers (born 1963) who is a Canadian actor famous for his Austin Powers character. Lastly, there is Michael Myers (born 1969) who was an MLB pitcher playing for several teams including the New York Yankees.

Answer: Plough fields

The name Ackerman comes from the old English word 'acker' which meant 'field'. An ackerman, not owning any property himself, would plough fields for those who did.

Famous Ackermans include actor Chris Ackerman, Ernest, Dick, and Gary Ackerman who were US politicians, and Forest J. Ackerman, a science fiction author.

Answer: Mr Barker

There is more than one origin for the name Barker. The origin as suggested in the question is derived from the Middle English word 'bark' meaning 'to tan'. Tree bark was used in the tanning process as a dye and barkers would strip trees of their bark to provide the necessary materials. Another origin of Barker is from the Old French word 'berquier' meaning 'shepherd'. Barker may also be a variation of the German name Berger meaning someone who lived near a hill/mountain.

Famous Barkers include Clive, Dominic and Pat who are authors, politicians Joseph and Pierre Barker, Ronnie Barker the wonderful comedian and actor from Britain, and Sue Barker, a British tennis player.

This is starting to sound like Mr Men book isn't it? ;-)

Answer: Both

The person I needed to see about my roof's maintenance would have depended on the type of roof on my house. If I have a tiled or shingled roof, I'd have called on Mr Slater. If, on the other hand, my roof was made of thatch, I'd call on Mr Thatcher. Both names come from roofing occupations.

Famous Slaters include actor Christian Slater and Aussie cricketer Michael Slater. Thatchers? Can there be a more famous Thatcher than Margaret Hilda Thatcher, nee Roberts, former Prime Minister of the UK (1979-90).

Answer: Mr Kellogg

Will Keith Kellogg (1860-1951) was the founder of the cereal giant Kellogg's company. Vegetarianism is a lifestyle Kellogg advocated for its health benefits. I wonder if he knew that his surname may be derived from the occupation of 'killing hogs' or 'kill hog'. There is another theory that Kellogg comes from a Scottish term meaning 'church by the lake'.

Frank B. Kellogg was US Secretary of State in the 1920s and won the Nobel Peace Prize. Virginia Kellogg was a US author, Charles, John and Orlando Kellogg were US politicians, and Remington Kellogg was a naturalist and director of the US National Museum.

Answer: Allocating his lord's provisions to the manor household

A manor house may have had many staff such as a marshal in charge of the horses, a steward for administration, a butler to see to the running of the household and the hiring or firing of staff, and a dispenser. A dispenser was a highly ranked staff member in charge of dispensing provisions to the household, and perhaps also to the serfs working his lord's land. The job of dispenser was only slightly less important than the steward.

Any famous Spencers? Well, there was a certain Spencer woman who became one of the most famous women on our planet. Diana Frances Spencer (1961-1997) became the Princess of Wales in 1981. Through marriage, Diana, Princess of Wales, was also a relation of Winston Spencer Churchill, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Lady Anne Churchill married Charles Spencer, 3rd Earl of Sunderland in 1700, linking the two families.

Answer: Dyer of cloth

Dexter as a surname started life referring to female dyers of cloth (or indeed the dye makers) but gradually became used for male dyers. The name Dyer also comes from this origin.

Ted Dexter was a very successful British cricketer, James Dexter was an American footballer, and Gregory Dexter was a clergyman and early governor in colonial Rhode Island. Dexter is also being used a given name with Dexter Blackstock (footballer), Dexter Fletcher (actor), and Dexter Gordon (musician) carrying that moniker.

Answer: Dr Leach

Feeling unwell? Got a tickle in your throat? Dr Leach will fix you up in no time by applying multiple leeches to your skin and having them remove the poisons which are making you ill. It's irrelevant that you may lose enough blood with repeated treatments to make you much more ill (or even die), than the initial disease ever would have made you feel. It's from this practice that the name Leach came into being. If that is your name, you may well have had a doctor in the family tree back in the Middle Ages or beyond. The name can be traced back to the 6th century.

Interestingly, treatment of a few conditions with leeches is making a comeback. If you have a haematoma after an operation, a leech may be applied to remove the excess blood pooled in the operative site. This prevents scar tissue forming and reduces the chance of other complications such as pain or infection. You won't find you local doctor reaching for a jar of leeches when you see him about your blood pressure though. ;-)

Drs Casey, Kildare and Ross might have all been doctors from television but their names aren't derived from medical practices. Casey comes from the word 'cathasach' which in old Gaelic denoted watchfulness or vigilance. As a surname, Ross has several possible derivations including locations in England, France or Wales, horse breeder (Old High German), or 'red-haired' in Middle English. The surname of Kildare is denotes a family who descended from County Kildare in Ireland.